10 Ways to Organize a Messy Laundry Room
Guest post by Alison W.
Unlike online car insurance, a messy laundry room really is a mess. There are bins and baskets of dirty, smelly laundry over here, a basket of damp delicates that can’t go into the dryer over there, a dryer that’s full of clothes that need to be taken out before they wrinkle. The iron board has a pile of clothes on it, some folded and some not. Nearby is another basket of washed, dried and ironed clothes that need to be put back where they came from. Cleaning this catastrophe can be more daunting than finding cheap online car insurance.
Here are ten ways to organize the laundry room:
1. Keep a Bunch of Sorting Baskets
Keep a basket for whites, one for pastels, one for dark colors. Keep one for towels, robes and other fabrics that generate lint. Have baskets for delicates, hand-washables and bedclothes. Have a basket for really dirty clothes, like the ones worn to work in the garden or for other yard work. Attach labels or tags to each basket to make sure that everyone in the household knows where everything goes.
2. Dry Delicates on a Drying Rack
A drying rack can be made of wood, or plastic coated wire. Some can be conveniently hung from the ceiling and they actually look very esthetically pleasing if they go with the decor of the laundry room. Yes, the laundry room really should have a thought-out decor and ideally should be bright, welcoming and well ventilated. Messiness looks just that much worse in a room that’s gloomy and musty.
3. Bring In Wire Shelving
If there’s a little alcove in the laundry room, take the junk out of it. Replace it with pretty wire shelves. Fasten a clothing rod to the top of the alcove entrance. There, clothes can be hung after they’re taken out of the dryer. Reserve each shelf for something and make sure the shelf is used only for that something. The lower shelf can be used for detergents, starch, and other cleaning products. The second shelf can be used to dry sweaters. The third shelf can be used for towels, the fourth shelf can be filled with wooden boxes or woven baskets for spray bottles, brushes, sponges, cheesecloth, cotton balls and other things. The top shelf can be used for pillows and bedclothes.
4. Install Collapsible Shelving
Sometimes there’s no room for wire shelving. A shelf that collapses can be used to hold clothes after they’ve been taken out of the dryer and can be folded away when it’s not in use.
5. Hang Ironing Board and Iron
Attach Another Wire Hanger To the Wall For the Ironing Board and the Iron. This keeps them out of the way when they’re not being used.
6. Hide It
If the laundry space is really tiny, hide it behind curtains or louvered folding doors when it’s not in use. This can look very neat and pretty indeed. It will add a clean look to the room that houses the laundry space.
7. Put Up a Cork Board
A cork board can hold a surprising number of things, and not just random slips of paper held with push pins. Make up and print out a list of the correct temperatures, for both washer and dryer, for all the fabrics. There should also be a list of what kinds of bleach can be used for fabrics as well. A stain removal chart should also be posted on the cork board. Of course, the homemaker can read the care labels on the clothes, but care labels can come off and the printing on them can be worn away with repeated washing.
It might even be helpful to jot down the type of fabric and its care when the item is first bought, enter it into a computer and print it out. A chart with care label symbols should also be put up on the cork board for easy reference.
8. Keep the Area Clean
Wipe up, mop up, sweep up after every washing day. Don’t forget to look behind the washer and dryer now and then. There’s bound to be something back there that needs to be cleaned up. A broom closet in the laundry room, if there’s space, is perfect. There should be space enough for a mini vacuum cleaner, a mop, broom and pail.
9. Give Everyone Their Own Laundry Bag
This will, it is hoped, keep dirty clothes from being tossed on the floor and kicked under the bed. Hampers should be kept in the laundry room as well as in the bathrooms. Have members of the family bring their laundry to the laundry room and toss it in the hamper every day.
10. Learn the Proper Way to Fold Clothes
Nothing looks neater than properly folded clothes, towels and bed linens. If everything else in the laundry room is a mess, folded clothes and sheets must cut down on the perception of mess by at least half.
Parting Thoughts
If doing the laundry is never going to be a great pleasure, a well organized laundry room can make the task less onerous. Having a system, knowing where everything is and getting the family to cooperate will at least save the homemaker time. Who knows? Maybe laundry day will be a day to sort of look forward to after all!
Author Bio: Alison is a freelance writer who enjoys reading, poetry, and her dog Simon. She has been known as a “neat freak” and has exceptional organizational skills.
